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Oklahoma: State Initiative Profile
CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF SOCIAL POLICY  1575 EYE STREET NW, STE. 500  WASHINGTON, DC 20010  WWW.CSSP.ORG  WWW.STRENGTHENINGFAMILIES.NET
Overview
Oklahoma launched Strengthening Families™ in seven pilot communities in 2007 to provide concrete supports to families through early childhood programs. The Oklahoma Strengthening Families initiative provides training and structure for program staff to better support families and children in their times of need; and, to help families and program staff build Protective Factors that reduce the likelihood of adverse home and care environments. Key partners include the Oklahoma State Department of Health as lead agency, the Smart Start Oklahoma (Oklahoma’s state early childhood advisory council), the Department of Human Services and Smart Start Communities.
Building Strengthening Families Practice on the Ground
The goals of Oklahoma Strengthening Families are to
 Improve parents’ knowledge of parenting and child development, expand parents’ social support circle and increase parents’ access to community resources
 Improve the early childhood program environment in order to better facilitate positive provider-to-child interactions, provider-to-parent interactions and parent-to-parent interactions
With a training grant from Zero to Three, Oklahoma trained 40 early care and education professionals across the state in the Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect (PCAN) Parent –Provider Partnership curriculum.
Initially, five child care sites in each of the pilot communities participated in the initiative. Today, efforts have expanded to other programs and events in the communities. Activities include school readiness efforts, parent training, parent cafes and community-wide events that focus on the Strengthening Families Protective Factors.
Key Aspects of the State’s work
Policy / Systems Change
Oklahoma has embedded the Strengthening Families Protective Factors framework in the state’s Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems Grant, the Smart Start Initiative and the State Plan for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect.
Strengthening Families is a research-based, cost-effective strategy to increase family stability, enhance child development and reduce child abuse and neglect. It builds five protective factors:
Parental resilience
Social connections
Knowledge of parenting and child development
Concrete support in times of need
Social and emotional competence of children
Through the Strengthening Families Initiative, more than thirty states are shifting policy, funding and training to help programs working with children and families build protective factors with families. Many states are also using the Strengthening Families approach to integrate state prevention strategies, strengthen families in the child welfare system and engage parents and communities in building protective factors. For more information, visit www.strengtheningfamilies.net
Nationally, Strengthening Families is coordinated by the Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) and supported by a number of national partner organizations including:
The National Alliance of Children’s Trust and Prevention Funds
The BUILD Initiative
United Way Worldwide
Zero to Three
The FRIENDS National Resource Center
The National Child Care Information Center

Oklahoma: State Initiative Profile
CENTER FOR THE STUDY OF SOCIAL POLICY  1575 EYE STREET NW, STE. 500  WASHINGTON, DC 20010  WWW.CSSP.ORG  WWW.STRENGTHENINGFAMILIES.NET
Overview
Oklahoma launched Strengthening Families™ in seven pilot communities in 2007 to provide concrete supports to families through early childhood programs. The Oklahoma Strengthening Families initiative provides training and structure for program staff to better support families and children in their times of need; and, to help families and program staff build Protective Factors that reduce the likelihood of adverse home and care environments. Key partners include the Oklahoma State Department of Health as lead agency, the Smart Start Oklahoma (Oklahoma’s state early childhood advisory council), the Department of Human Services and Smart Start Communities.
Building Strengthening Families Practice on the Ground
The goals of Oklahoma Strengthening Families are to
 Improve parents’ knowledge of parenting and child development, expand parents’ social support circle and increase parents’ access to community resources
 Improve the early childhood program environment in order to better facilitate positive provider-to-child interactions, provider-to-parent interactions and parent-to-parent interactions
With a training grant from Zero to Three, Oklahoma trained 40 early care and education professionals across the state in the Preventing Child Abuse and Neglect (PCAN) Parent –Provider Partnership curriculum.
Initially, five child care sites in each of the pilot communities participated in the initiative. Today, efforts have expanded to other programs and events in the communities. Activities include school readiness efforts, parent training, parent cafes and community-wide events that focus on the Strengthening Families Protective Factors.
Key Aspects of the State’s work
Policy / Systems Change
Oklahoma has embedded the Strengthening Families Protective Factors framework in the state’s Early Childhood Comprehensive Systems Grant, the Smart Start Initiative and the State Plan for Prevention of Child Abuse and Neglect.
Strengthening Families is a research-based, cost-effective strategy to increase family stability, enhance child development and reduce child abuse and neglect. It builds five protective factors:
Parental resilience
Social connections
Knowledge of parenting and child development
Concrete support in times of need
Social and emotional competence of children
Through the Strengthening Families Initiative, more than thirty states are shifting policy, funding and training to help programs working with children and families build protective factors with families. Many states are also using the Strengthening Families approach to integrate state prevention strategies, strengthen families in the child welfare system and engage parents and communities in building protective factors. For more information, visit www.strengtheningfamilies.net
Nationally, Strengthening Families is coordinated by the Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) and supported by a number of national partner organizations including:
The National Alliance of Children’s Trust and Prevention Funds
The BUILD Initiative
United Way Worldwide
Zero to Three
The FRIENDS National Resource Center
The National Child Care Information Center